Privacy

How to use Safe.mn

Why do I need shorter URLs?

Some services, such as mobile SMS, Twitter, Facebook, limit the number of characters you can use in a message. Twitter is limited to 140 characters. If you want to add a web address to your message, it should be as small as possible. With Safe.mn, you can replace a long URL with a smaller one that will lead you to the same web address.

Short URL are also easier to remember. If you need to spell out a web address over the phone, you will have an easier time with a short URL.

How are visitors redirected to the final destination?

We ensure that all links are safe. All URLs that are shortened by Safe.mn are thoroughly tested to make sure visitors are not redirected to an unsafe website (see the list of tests for more details). We redirect the users in different ways depending on the status of the final destination:

1. The URL has been determined safe.The visitor is redirected transparently to the final destination. Try http://safe.mn/1 for example.

2. The URL has been flagged as potentially unsafe.A warning from Safe.mn is displayed to the user, with the reasons why we think the final destination is unsafe. The user has the choice to leave, or to click on a link to get to the final URL. See http://safe.mn/2 for such a warning.

3. The URL has not been fully tested.If the URL points to a file that is very big, or very slow to download, we may not be able to fully inspect it. In this case, the user is warned that the final destination could not be fully verified. The user has the choice to leave, or to click on a link to get to the final URL. See http://safe.mn/6 for such a warning.

How does Safe.mn work with redirections?

Safe.mn follows all redirections and saves the final URL. For example, if http://www.mywebsite.com/ actually redirects to http://www.othersite.com/site.html, we use the final destination http://www.othersite.com/site.html. We check both addresses, but the short link will redirect to http://www.othersite.com/site.html.

This is done to ensure the security of the visitor: we make sure we test the page the user is finally redirected to.

Can I replace my tinyURL/bit.ly/other short URLs with Safe.mn short links?

Because we follow all redirections (see the previous question), you can use Safe.mn to replace existing short URLs and enjoy more safety and transparency. For example, http://tinyurl.com/b redirects to http://www.betshop.com/. If you shorten http://tinyurl.com/b, your new Safe.mn short link will redirect directly to http://www.betshop.com/, bypassing tinyurl.com.

Can you detail each security test?

Coming soon...

How do you make sure Safe.mn links will always be available?

We maintain a public list of all the URLs shortened by Safe.mn. Anybody can get it, and make a public image of it. This guarantees your Safe.mn links can always be converted to the original URL. Get it at http://safe.mn/static/safemn.zip

Can I generate Safe.mn short links from my Google home page, my Yahoo Home page or my Facebook profile?

Privacy

What is your privacy policy?

We take your privacy very seriously. We collect the following information about our web visitors: Country of origin, type of browser, and page visited. The information cannot be used to track individuals. In order to get the country of origin of the visitors, we collect the IP address, and may need to store it temporary. The IP address is not stored for a long period of time, and it is never shared.